


A Different Road to the Afterlife

by whythursdaynext



Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: After 2x15, Brief cameos from mcu and SHIELD characters, For everyone unsatisfied with Ward's characterization in the finale, Gen, Out of Cannon, mcu crossover, mostly Skye and Ward
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-04-14
Updated: 2015-05-19
Packaged: 2018-03-22 23:14:02
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 8,915
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3747151
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/whythursdaynext/pseuds/whythursdaynext
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Skye, after the events in Wisconsin, has decided that it was time for her to leave the team and sort things out on her own. Unfortunately, she runs into Grant Ward.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Second First Impression

Above all else, she had to remain calm. Freaking out would only cause more damage and destruction and hurt somebody else. More essentially, it would bring her own S.H.I.E.L.D. team down on her ass. 

Skye picked up the cup of coffee in front of her and swirled the burnt decaf around.  Coulson was going to be angry. May even more so. She didn't even want to consider what May would say to her when she found her. What would be worse than May's ice cold wrath: the hurt puppy faces of Fitzsimmons. Maybe not Simmons so much anymore. That stuff she'd been saying about destroying anyone with infected DNA... this side of Simmons scared her. But Trip had died, and nobody had been near normal since then. 

She poured a packet of sugar into her cup and swirled it again, the sugar crystals sinking undissolved into the lukewarm coffee. She need to stay alert, so she could stay away from her team and hurting anyone else again.  She really had no idea where to go. Skye looked around at the grimy diner she was sitting in, full of exhausted truckers. The waitress was in a faded polyester pink dress with one of those permanent aprons, and every surface was one visit from the county away from a health code violation. She was not going to stay here, that was certain. Unfortunately, her usual tricks weren't any good until got a secure computer in front of her. Even with that, she'd taught Fitz well enough that he'd probably be able to track her. 

The sugar packets on the table in front of her were starting to vibrate. 

Skye set her coffee cup down, laid her hands on the table, and took several deep breaths, eyes still on the sugar packets. It took a few moments, but they finally went still. She remained stationary, slightly relieved. Even if she couldn't completely control her emotions and the vibrations they caused, her growing ability to dampen them was reassuring. It felt like reaching out a mental hand to stop a mentally ringing bell. If she could get this completely under control, she may be able to rejoin her team a lot sooner than she'd previously thought, which was in the approximate range of never. 

With this cheering thought, Skye stood and slung her bag over her shoulder. It was time to keep moving forward, even if she wasn't exactly sure where. She paid for her coffee at the register and shoved her change into her pocket. 

From behind her, she heard a familiar voice. "Skye?"

She turned towards him, slowly. It was Grant Ward. 

"What are you doing here?" Skye asked, her voice cracking. 

The last time they'd met, he'd been crazy stalker level in love with her, and she had shot him in the knee. Unfortunately she didn't have a gun with her now. 

The plates, cups, silverware, and chairs in the diner were rattling. Skye fought to regain control, through the waves of fear and anger that were crashing over her. Ward had helped her father, which had led to the mess in Puerto Rico, Trip dead, Mac possessed, and alien DNA in Skye for the second time. This was all due in part to him. 

"Skye," Ward repeated, his voice the calm and soothing one of a ranger to a wild bear.

The other people in the diner were running under tables and doorways. They all seemed to think it was a standard So Cal earthquake. No one had realized yet that she was the epicenter. Which was exactly why she needed to run now. As soon as someone got the idea that this was something out of the ordinary, out would come the camera phones. Within 15 minutes her face and location would be on the internet, and anyone would be able to find her. Especially her team. 

Skye turned and ran out of the restaurant, towards the oldest, most nondescript van she could find. In the old days, she would have been able to crack the electric lock on any of these cars in a half second. Here she had no equipment other than a brief field lesson on car borrowing from Melinda May. 

"Skye?" Ward had also left the diner, but it didn't seem like his stalker self could see her yet. All she needed was a couple more seconds...

"Skye, I'm not going to hurt you. I just want to talk."

Ward was right behind her. He had a gun in his hand, but as she turned to look at him, he leaned over and set it on the ground. 

"I'm not armed," Ward said. "Just want to talk." 

Skye stopped trying to break into the van. She stood to get on his level, refusing to let her anger show, even though he deserved it, because remaining in control was more important that yelling at the traitor in front of her. It seemed to be working. Nothing was shaking, or rattling, or doing anything other than standing still. She let this small victory wash over her as she considered how to deal with Ward. She had considered the whole thing done after she'd shot him, but the universe had other ideas. It was doing that a lot lately. She was getting tired of the universe and its crap. 

"Grant Ward," Skye said. "One knee wasn't enough for you? You wanted to see if I'd hit the other one, give you a complete set?" 

"I understand that you're angry, and that you're perfectly justified, but I-"

"You what? Wanted to apologize? We're so far beyond that point right now that May wouldn't be able to see it with binoculars. You know what? Fuck you, Grant Ward. Have an excellent time in Hell. I hope they pick you up and throw you into the deepest darkest prison, the one where they keep all the Hydra scum you betrayed." 

The cars were shaking, rumbling like trains. Skye was too angry to notice. 

Ward was not. His expression shifted from conciliatory and defensive to slightly confused and awestruck. 

He looked at her eagerly. "You're doing that, aren't you?" 

Skye looked around herself and realized, that once again, she was sending her own signal to leave. "This conversation is over." 

She started to leave, but then quickly remembered her transportation dilemma. Ward was on the run; he had been for a while. He had to have a car stashed nearby. Better yet, because it was Ward, it would be untraceable and nondescript. He was an evil bastard stalker psychopath, but he was still a damn good field agent.

"Ward," She took one small step closer, enough to make him look slightly hopeful. "Give me your car keys."

"Skye, maybe do you think we should discuss-"

"Car keys," She held out her hand. Ward slowly reached into his pocket and tossed her the keys.

"Thanks," she said, in full snark. "What is it, and where is it?"  

"Black sedan. End of the fourth row." 

"Right." She paused, looking him over. He still had that look of adoration, combined with his unwavering certainty that he was right. It was really annoying. 

"I'd better not see you again. Ever. Otherwise my new found skill set will take out a few more of your joints."

Ward nodded. Skye picked his gun up and slid it into her back waistband. She started toward the back corner of the parking lot. 

What she hadn't realized: two rounds of seismic activity was too much for the dilapidated buildings around her. The diner roof and the light poles were falling down around her, in what felt like slow motion, but was really just the adrenaline. She closed her eyes and tried to pull all of her power back in, filling her limbs up with the energy from her anger until they ached. 

"Skye!"

Ward's warning call went unheeded. He did the only thing he could possibly do under the circumstances. Ward tackled Skye out of the way of the ton of neon diner sign that was about to topple directly on her. He maneuvered himself to catch the ground before she did.

Skye, shocked at the unexpected contact and the near-death moment, lost all hold on her powers. A huge shockwave knocked down everything in a 100 ft radius. Cars and trucks were thrown like footballs. A whole wall of the diner completely collapsed inwards. The light poles that had made it so far began to sway and fall. Skye's body felt like it had been run over by the Hulk carrying a semi. The pain swept her whole body up through her neck and straight to her head. Skye blacked out. 


	2. Not Afraid of Much Anymore

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Skye settles her own feelings about Ward, who kinda just saved her.

When Skye woke up, she expected to be lying on the hot asphalt parking lot surrounded by fallen light poles and overturned cars. Instead she was sitting in a comfortable seat in a cool... she fought her brain's inclination to stay unconscious... she was in the front seat of a car. Her body ached like she'd been crushed like a car in an auto scrapper, and she wasn't sure who was driving. She opened her mouth to ask, her voice coming out in a croak.

"What is going on?"

"Skye," Grant Ward answered, "You're awake."

She remembered the parking lot and how it was completely rational that Ward was the one who'd pulled her out of the disaster zone. She wondered if she should be angry or afraid at this realization- certainly not grateful- but, instead her head was too busy processing her various scrapes, bruises, and whatever internal damage she'd managed to do to herself to worry about any kind of emotion. Pain was turning out to be an excellent deterrent to her new powers. Maybe she should reserve that tactic as a last ditch effort.

"How are you feeling?" Ward's voice was calm, but not overly friendly, thank god.

"Like May beat me up and threw me out of the bus mid-flight."

"That bad?"

"Let's just say that if I wasn't strapped to this seat, I'd fall over right now," Skye said, immediately regretting it. Never ever ever again should she be vulnerable around Grant Ward. He was a traitor. Never show the enemy your weaknesses. But her brain had tricked her into believing it was the good old days, that Ward was her S.O. and unendingly loyal to S.H.I.E.L.D. Back when he'd had so little visible personality that they'd thought he was a bit of a stick-in-the-mud. She severely hoped that this was a delusion brought on by the pain.

"Where are we going?" Skye asked.

"Based on what I could tell from a field exam and the amount of pain you seem to be in, you've got at least a few fractured ribs, and a few other bones in pretty bad shape. I figured you didn't want to go to a hospital or to S.H.I.E.L.D. because Coulson and May didn't come flying in, guns blazing, to save you. And there's the issue of your powers, which means you're probably on the index."

"How do you know that I would... " Skye remembered the events at the diner again as her muscles cramped. "Oh, right. Never mind."

Ward did not reply.

Skye then remembered that he hadn't ever actually answered her question. "So, wait. Where are we going?"

"Someplace safe. I know a doctor who can look you over and patch you up without drawing attention. Without calling S.H.I.E.L.D., or the government, or anyone else who might be on the lookout for people with powers."

"This person doesn't work for Hydra, right?" Skye asked nervously.

Ward laughed. "Like I said, he's not going to be interested in reporting your abilities to any of the organizations, or try to take advantage of them. He's had issues with uncontrollable powers himself, and he'd like to keep everyone else out of the equation whenever possible."

"If he has so much previous experience with powers, how do you know that Hydra or S.H.I.E.L.D. or whatever isn't watching him?"

"He's good at keeping a low profile. And he has an agreement with them that allows him to live his life... privately."

"It's not my dad, is it?" Skye asked, suddenly terrified.

Ward's voice was suddenly gentle. "No, it's not your father. I know your interactions with him were... complicated..."

"There's an understatement."

It was silent for a moment.

"I'm sorry things didn't work out with your father," Ward said.

"I know that meeting him wasn't exactly the family reunion you were hoping for."

Skye stared out the window, in order to avoid seeing any hint of empathy or pity on Ward's face. The desert flew by around them. the sun was bright, but a little past overhead. The two-lane highway was completely empty except for them. If Ward wanted to kill her and dump her body out in the middle of nowhere, nobody would probably ever find her. On the other hand, with her new skill set, and months of training with Melinda May, Skye actually had a chance of taking Ward down. This thought led to another more interesting realization: she wasn't afraid of him anymore. She was terrified of whatever alien stuff was running through her veins, and that she would never go back to being normal again, Skye the computer hacker, Skye the agent. Ward was still a creep and a murder, and his mere existence still annoyed her, but even though he was one of the most dangerous men she knew, he was well within her problem-solving skill set. This time she didn't even have to pretend to like him.

"How much longer until we get there?" Skye asked.

"We're still a few hours out." Ward answered, eyes on the road. "I'd sleep if I was you. Let your body start to fix itself."

Skye figured that sleeping was preferable to awkward conversations and/or silence with Ward. It was also far more pleasant that suffering through the dull aches, twinges, and general pain all over her body consciously. She leaned her head back against the headrest and fell quickly asleep. 

* * *

 

When Skye woke up, the sky was pink, purple, and golden; the beauty of the sunset was not hampered in anyway by the company. They seemed to have driven to the edge of the sand desert. Rocks and cliffs were emerging from the twilight in front of them. Ward navigated the SUV between the outcroppings and around the road bends with his standard level of proficiency.

It took them twenty minutes of winding through the rocks to reach their destination, a small cabin hidden down a road so narrow that Skye had briefly through that Ward was going to drive them into a solid rock face, and almost tried to gain control of the wheel before he turned. After the hours of driving and the general excitement of the morning, the sight was underwhelming. Her apathy was only increased by the exponential rate that the pain in her body seemed to be following as it crept all over her body.

Ward parked the car. He got out of the SUV and leaned against the hood. Skye followed suit, although very slowly, so she wouldn't damage anything else. The lights of the cabin glowed dimly behind the curtains, but suddenly one opened, and the light flooded the drive, illuminating Skye and Ward. A face appeared in the open window, and then disappeared again. The curtains were closed again, but a few moments later the cabin door opened. A man emerged, holding a flash light awkwardly in one hand, as he struggled to put his jacket over his shoulder. He walked towards them, his moments cautious but non-threatening. When he reached the car, he mussed his salt-and-pepper hair absent-mindedly and slipped a pair of glasses on. 

"Agent Ward," the man said, not in the manner of another field agent, but rather as though that simply were Grant's name. "And who is...?"

"This is Skye," Ward said. "She needs your help, Doctor Banner." 

"I hope I can help." The man held out a hand for Skye to shake. "And you can call me Bruce." 


	3. In the Hall of the Mountain Hulk

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dr. Bruce Banner helps Skye get patched up.

Even as she was shaking Dr. Banner’s hand, Skye felt pain shooting up through her arm and down her spine. She must have wobbled or something, because instantly Ward and Dr. Banner were at her side, helping her stay upright.

“Let’s get her inside,” the doctor suggested. He and Ward guided her up the drive and into the cabin. Ward seemed to resist the urge to pick her up and carry her there.

The interior of the cabin was fairly bare bones. Bruce led Skye to the couch, and then went to rummage in a nearby cabinet.

“I’m sorry, but I don’t have much in the way of medical equipment up here. Current circumstances… I’m trying to keep a low profile…”

“We’re trying to stay off Hydra’s radar as well,” Ward jumped in. “And we appreciate you letting us come here directly.”

“No problem, no problem,” muttered Dr. Banner absently-mindedly as he began his examination of Skye. “After all, I am still a doctor, even with the other guy.”

Skye decided this was an excellent time to keep quiet about certain aspects of Ward’s past.

“So how do you know Agent Ward exactly, Dr. Banner?” Skye asked, Ward shaking his head no in the background. Skye ignored him.

“He was one of the many S.H.I.E.L.D. specialists I patched up after the battle of New York.” He turned to Ward, “You were helping Natasha keep an eye on me for a bit after that, but then you were transferred out not long after.”

Ward’s expression flickered for a moment. “Yes, that’s how it happened, Dr. Banner.”

“Where’d you transfer to, if you don’t mind my asking? Or is that classified?” Bruce laughed.

Ward shifted his weight ever so slightly. “I moved into special teams. Specializing in 0-8-4 incidents.”

“I see.” He returned to his examination. “I presume you’ve met Thor?”

Ward leaned back against the wall. “Before my time, sir.”

Skye was curious, a feeling she hadn’t had the privilege of enjoying since before all of this Hydra mess started. Thor. A god-alien? Genuine powered person? Dr. Banner said his name like he knew him. _Personally_. And not only personally, but like it was no big deal for someone to have met a hot hammer wielding blonde man from Asgard. Dr. Banner was clearly not new to the world of powers and their aftereffects, which should have given Skye comfort, but instead increased her interest.

For a moment, Skye was a young Rising Tide hacker again, searching for truth carefully concealed behind government cover-ups and an agency called S.H.I.E.L.D. But a twinge in her neck as Dr. Banner adjusted his instruments reminded her who she was now, an agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. with alien blood running through her veins, as ironic as that was. Unfortunately, this also reminded her of how angry she was at Ward. She nearly gave herself emotional whiplash trying to keep herself calm, but she didn’t. Her powers didn’t flare.

Doctor Banner finished his examination and began to put his equipment away, muttering incoherently the entire time. Skye shifted down on the couch to get comfortable. Ward looked worried.

“So what’s the prognosis, doc?” He asked after another minute.

“Well,” Dr. Banner said to the cabinet, “as far as I can tell, Skye, well you have hairline fractures along most of your bones, as well as some deep tissue bruises.” He paused. “Might I ask how exactly you came by these injuries?”

“Uh… Earthquake,” Skye covered. “Quake…avalanche really. We were up in the mountains and there was a small quake, and then all the rocks fell, and you know…”

Ward rubbed his temples, probably because her inability to lie was killing his inner agent.

Dr. Banner closed his cabinet and walked over to Skye, bandages in his hands. “So I’m going to pretend to believe that as a courtesy, and wrap your arms up to stabilize the bones so they heal properly.”

“Uh…thanks,” Skye said, grateful that he was smart enough to know when to play dumb.

 

Dr. Banner spent the next twenty minutes wrapping up her arms and ankles, Ward standing against the wall silently. He then made the three of them a pot of tea. Skye sipped hers slowly, the warm soothing a little of the pain and a chunk of her stress. Dr. Banner said he was going to bed early, and took his cup with him. He did, however, emerge a few moments later with a sleeping bag for Ward, who accepted it without comment. He didn’t drink any of the tea.

Skye finished her mug, and set it on the table. This was probably the best time to have a chat with Ward, as much as she would have preferred to avoid it.

“Ward.”

“Yes?” He was immediately focused on her, still obsessed after all that had happened.

“Why did we come here?”

“I told you, Dr. Banner is one of the best, and really good at keeping a low profile.”

Skye sighed and looked at the ceiling. “Ward, how long are you planning to stay here?”

“As long as it takes.”

“For what? For me to heal? For me to join the avengers? For me to forgive you?”

“I just want what’s best for you, Skye,” Ward said, “and right now that means protecting you until you’re ready to protect yourself again.”

“I really don’t need your help.” 

“I’d say the bone fractures would disagree.”

Skye’s eyes met his, her slow burning fury countered by steady, inalterable affection. It was the same face her father had made when he’d finally found her. Skye could no longer stomach this conversation.

“Here’s the deal,” Skye said, “You are allowed to hang around me for as long as it takes me to get back to fighting form and get to the nearest transportation hub. After that, you’re gone, and I never see you again. Ever.”

“Okay, just until you get better. Deal.” Ward nodded his head, unperturbed. “It’s getting late. You really should sleep. Help you get better faster.”

He was taking this far too calmly. She tried to convince herself that that was a good thing, as the two settled into their beds. 

 

Skye took forever to fall asleep. Then she dreamed that her father was chasing her with his surgical knife yelling how beautiful she could be if he just let her reach her destiny, but Skye kept running past the bodies of Fitz and Simmons crushed under rocks to reach Coulson, who only asked, “How could you? Skye?” 

“SKYE.” That was not her dream anymore. She fought her way to consciousness again. Ward’s hands were on her shoulders. It felt like he was shaking her awake, but a moment later she realized that she was shaking, the entire cabin was shaking. She heard the roof creak and moan, and closed her eyes, certain that this time the roof would get her, but then there was a roar and the sound of wood cracking.

Skye opened her eyes to find Ward still standing over her, fear on his face, and a giant green man throwing was left of the roof out of the cabin.

“Ward,” Skye asked, “Is that the _Hulk_?”  


	4. A Hulk Chase Scene

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Skye and Ward are chased by the Hulk. (I'm sorry, I write really short chapters.)

“ _Is that the Hulk?_ ” Skye repeated.

 

Ward removed his hands from her shoulders. “Yes, it is.”

“Wha-?” Skye’s question was interrupted by Ward turning to their bags, which he’d pulled to the couch, closing them, and slinging them over his shoulders.

“Can you walk?” Ward asked, “and how quickly?”

“Uh… I… I really don’t know,” Skye said nervously, noting that the Hulk was almost done pulling rubble off himself.

“Right,” Ward said and scooped her off the couch. “It’s time for us to go.”

Skye would have objected, but there were bigger things to worry about at the moment than Grant Ward carrying her again.

They made it out the door, down the stairs, and to Ward’s car just as the Hulk began to look around for the source of the threat. Ward set her down next to the rear driver’s side door. Skye maneuvered herself into the backseat, slowed down somewhat by the bandages and stents.  Ward opened the driver’s door, and then reached for the gun tucked into the back of his jeans.

“You’re not seriously going to shoot the Hulk,” Skye said, temporarily forgetting the dangerous side of the Hulk and focusing instead on the Battle of New York hero.

Ward slid into the drivers seat and started the engine. “Shooting the Hulk with a standard pistol isn’t going to do anything but slow him down a little. And rumor has it that the only people that can turn off Hulk mode are Romanoff and an agent called Hawkeye.”

The Hulk turned at the sound of the car engine. Ward muttered something in Russian under his breath and pulled the car back into the drive. The Hulk started stomping towards them.

Skye, who had spent enough time training with Melinda May to be useful in these situations, quickly looked for the best opportunity to keep the Hulk off their tail. Ward had both hands on the wheel. His gun was laying on the front passenger seat. Skye steeled herself for the aches that moving would cause, grabbed the handgun and pulled herself into the front seat. This, combined with the bouncing motion of the car, hurt so much that it nearly made her sick, but Skye could be insanely resilient when she needed to be. She gritted her teeth and focused on the weapon in her hands.  If shooting the Hulk wasn’t going to help, especially considering how well she would be able to aim at a constantly veering target in an extremely unstable van, she needed to find another way to prevent him going after him. She watched the rocky terrain whizz past the window and remembered the roof debris from earlier. Maybe if she could block his path...

“What are you doing?” Ward bellowed over the thundering steps of the Hulk behind them.

“Not getting killed.” Skye braced herself against the dash, rolled down the window, and took aim at the cliffside flying by. The car was still bouncing all over the road - how had she not noticed that yesterday?- but the cliff face was big and obvious next to them. Just like shooting the broad side of a barn. She closed her eyes for a moment to focus.

Three shots into the cliff loosened a cascade of stones, which rumbled down directly in front of the giant green attack man. The Hulk roared. Partially buried in rubble, he began throwing rocks off of his body furiously. A few of the smaller rocks bounced off the roof of their car, rattling the whole vehicle, but none did any significant damage. One did crack her window right after she rolled it back up. Thirty seconds later, Ward had pulled the car through the narrow gorge (which looked much wider the second time) back onto the main road.

 

The Hulk was wider than the car, so it was entirely possible that he wouldn’t be able to follow them. Ward was still driving like a maniac, so Skye settled in as lookout.

The gorge blocked most of her view, but she could still tell he was moving by the pattern of flying rocks and dust clouds sent up by the giant’s fury. The road here was much worse than that of Dr. Banner’s driveway, so Ward slowed down some, carefully maneuvering the car over the rocky terrain. Despite the outburst of the minutes before, Ward seemed insanely relaxed considering the situation. His trademark cool head seemed to be reasserting itself, which made Skye wonder: why was he scared earlier? The look on his face when he’d woke her was extremely tense, she remembered.

“He’s gaining on us,” Skye said steadily, right hand on the gun, left on the window control. She wasn’t sure that the rock fall trick would work a second time, but any plan was better than no plan. It was too bad she hadn’t gotten enough control over her powers yet to do something. The diner incident yesterday had illustrated that she had a lot of power at her disposal.

Ward nodded his confirmation and revved the accelerator a little. From the dust cloud hovering over the opening to the gorge, it seemed that the Hulk had been at least temporarily delayed by that bottleneck. A sudden roar and subsequent thump told her that the Hulk was trying something. A moment later, she saw, incredibly, his head appear over the top of the gorge. The Hulk was apparently trying to jump over the gap. He nearly made it the second time, his massive fingers scrabbling for purchase on the clifftop, but fell back again.

Skye watched this carefully, leaning and bobbing whenever the car’s motion pushed the gorge out of view. Her entire body was tense from the adrenaline, which thankfully also blotted out most of the pain from her previous injuries. Even so, eventually the gorge was out of her sight line, and the road grew smooth as Ward pulled onto the county highway.

There was never a definitive time when the chase seemed to end. Skye kept scanning the horizon for any signs of their attacker for another 10 minutes- or maybe 15. The adrenaline made it feel like hours. She did not let herself relax until Ward had slowed down the car.

“You can stand down now, Skye.” He said, using his old S.O. voice.

She put the safety on the pistol, and slowly turned in her seat until she was facing forward. The sunrise was creeping over the desert. She had apparently slept close to a full night. Unfortunate that her first full night of sleep since the obelisk had been interrupted by the Hulk.

“Okay,” Skye said, “This seems to be as good a time as any to ask. What the hell happened back there?”

“You don’t know?” Ward’s voice was concerned. Great, that was the last thing she needed, pity from the traitor.

“No, obviously, otherwise why would I be asking?”

Ward took a deep breath. “When I woke up, the whole cabin was shaking, which concerned me, so I tried to wake you up so we could evacuate if necessary. You were muttering in your sleep, and then you started to shake.”

“And…?”

“And as you shook, the cabin shook harder, the roof caved in on Dr. Banner, who turned into the Hulk.”

Skye latched onto that last piece of information, as it was the easiest to digest at the moment. “Wait, what? Dr. Banner is the _Hulk_? You’ve got to be kidding me. He seems like such a chill guy… such an awkward guy.”

“Apparently the Hulk is the result of a tragic accident in his genetics research. It’s why I thought he’d be the best doctor to look you over.”

Skye thought it over, and then followed that argument to its natural conclusion. “Dr. Banner is the Hulk, which does make him more suited than most to treat my… condition. But doesn’t that also make him an Avenger? Why wouldn’t he go call the nearest S.H.I.E.L.D. team and have them drag me in?”

“S.H.I.E.L.D. is dead, Skye. At least as far the outside world knows. Coulson served with the Avengers… and as far as I know, they still think he’s dead. That organization no longer officially or even secretly exists.”

Skye fell silent. Coulson and S.H.I.E.L.D. were the first family she’d had in her 25ish years on this planet. It had only just really occurred to her that, like her real family, they could never exist outside of layers of secrets and protocols. Leaving them behind had been a matter of necessity, not choice. She could not stay with them with her alien powers going haywire. It was too much risk to the team, especially when they needed every hand in the field.

Ward had just shown her the full extent of what that meant. While she had gone incognito to keep them from finding her, the same need for secrecy prevented her from finding them.

 

For what may have been the millionth time in her life, Skye was alone again.  And this time, she was running out of options.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Now that I've been working on this a few weeks, I'm thinking about going back and editing the first few chapters somewhat. Anyone have any suggestions?


	5. It's the Most Important Meal of the Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Skye and Ward have a chat.

Skye and Ward had been sitting in a car by the side of the road for the last 20 minutes. Silently. Both contemplating what they should be doing, could be doing right now. Skye was still in pretty bad shape physically and mentally. The biggest problem was that she kept destroying all of the places she was supposed to be hiding out in. She needed to find someplace where she could exist for more than five minutes without the roof falling to pieces.

“I’m sorry,” Ward said, finally breaking the silence. “I thought that Dr. Banner would be able to help.”

“Well, he might have, if I hadn’t tried to destroy the building which made him go all grumpy green giant.” Skye sighed and leaned her head back against the headrest.

“Right,” Ward said. “That was a factor.”

His words hung in the air for a moment. Skye decided that it might be time to cut her losses.

“I appreciate all that you’ve been doing and all, but I honestly think that I would be better off trying to figure this out on my own.”

“After this morning, I wouldn’t say that so much.”

“Okay, I may have a little issue with my emotions and causing earthquakes. But if I stay calm, and away from people, I think I can get this under control.”

“You’re not thinking straight on this one, Skye. Do you even know why you caused an earthquake in your sleep?”

Skye searched back in her memory for when she woke up. It felt like such a long time ago. It actually had probably only been an hour or so. The sun was still hovering over the horizon.

“I was dreaming, I think,” Skye said, blurry images passing through her brain.

“What about?” Ward asked.

Suddenly, she saw the bodies of Fitz and Simmons crushed underneath a pile of rubble, blood dripping from a scrape on Leo’s forehead and off Jemma’s outstretched fingers. Skye opened her eyes and looked out the window.

“Skye. Tell me,” Ward said, his voice soft.

“They were dead, okay? All of them. Fitz and Simmons and… they were dead, crushed under the rocks, my rocks, the ones I pulled down, because I couldn’t control myself. It was my fault.”

“Hey,” he said gently, “Look at me.”  

Skye continued staring out the window, tears rolling down her cheeks, trying to tell herself that it wasn’t real, that she hadn’t hurt anyone-

“Skye,” Ward said, with a little more force behind it. He waited for her to move, but she couldn’t look at him, couldn’t look anywhere but the vast expanse of empty sand. So he reached over and slowly pulled her chin towards him.

“Skye. None of this is your fault.”

She didn’t pull away from his hand, but she still couldn’t look up at him either.

“Sometimes, the things that happen to us and to the people around us are beyond our control. We just have to do the best we can with what we’re given.” Ward wiped a loose tear off her cheek. “And you are. You’re already handling things much better. The car isn’t even shaking right now.”

Skye half smiled. The part that concerned her most wasn’t her powers or her injuries or the lack of a permanent roof over her head. It was how easy it was for her to feel comfortable with him. Grant Ward. It wasn’t something she wanted to encourage.

“Why are you still here, Ward? Why haven’t you run for the hills? Retreated to the high ground?

What’s in this for you?”

“You know why,” Ward said, as though it was obvious.

Skye could only think of one reason. She didn’t like the implications of that reason.

Ward seemed to sense her discomfort. “After everything that’s happened, I understand that you’re not going to forgive me. I know that you probably are never going to like me. But I hope that, for right now, you can trust me. Because I still feel the same way about you as I did… before I left. If you need me, I will be there. I only want to keep you safe.”

Skye found herself wondering if this is what led her to Puerto Rico the first time: the look on Ward’s face, set with conviction and also braced for rejection. The confidence was irritating, but it was the vulnerability that made her do stupid things. This time though, she knew better. She could handle being in the same space with him as long as it took to regain control of her life. She was not going to get attached.

“Does what you said the last time I saw you still apply?” Skye asked.

“I stand by my promises, Skye. I told you that I would never lie to you again, and I won’t.”

“Are you working for Hydra?”

“No, I am not.”

“Are you working for Garrett?”

Ward frowned. “Garrett’s dead, Skye.”

She was firm. “Answer the question.”

“No, I am not working for Garrett. Or any other dead men.”

Skye had run out of things to say. There were questions she could ask. Do you still love me? Did you ever really love me? Why the hell did you fall in love with me? But the she knew the answer to the first two. And the last one was not something anyone could answer satisfactorily.

“I need some air,” Skye said, opening her door and pulling her aching body out of the seat.

“Where are you- ? Skye,” Ward said, exasperated.

She had only gotten out of the car, shut her door, and leaned up against its frame. They had a nice view of the sunrise here, something she would have preferred never to have seen, night owl that she was. She crossed her arms and sighed. Time to figure out a new plan.

From behind her, she heard a car door open and shut. Ward walked around to her side of the vehicle and propped himself up next to her.

“What, a girl can’t even get some fresh air in private?” Skye said, still refusing to look at him.

“We need to figure out our next step. What was your plan before you destroyed a diner and visited the Hulk?”

“I hadn’t gotten that far when I ran into you. What were you doing in that diner anyway?”

“Skye, that diner is one of my old dead drops. I was picking up some resources. In fact, I’m fairly certain I showed you that one while I was training you.”

“Oh,” Skye said, mentally kicking herself that all the spy training that she could remember she’d learned from a double-agent for Hydra.

“So what do you want to do?” Ward repeated.

Skye considered her options. Her favorite so far: leaning against this car in the middle of the desert, watching the sunrise. And then maybe finding some breakfast. Neither of these ideas were going to get her anywhere long term, but it did constitute a plan.

“I want breakfast.” Skye said.

Ward laughed for a full minute. Skye looked at him, surprised. She wasn’t sure that she had ever heard him laugh at all, much less with this much enthusiasm.

“Look, the suit can laugh,” She said, mock punching him.

“That is-” Ward started to protest.

Skye was worn out already, and it was barely morning. So she decided to blame exhaustion for her next impulsive decision. She leaned her head against his shoulder. Ward tensed at the sudden contact. “-really not accurate.”

Not supporting her own weight for a while was nice. More importantly, being in the same space with another human being who didn’t look at her like she’d caught the plague was helping her become much more calm about her powers.

Maybe Ward  was thinking along somewhat similar lines because the next thing he asked was “Why did you leave S.H.I.E.L.D.? They have the resources to handle this kind of thing, and Coulson would never let anyone lock you up.”

“I left because I was a danger to the mission and to the team in my current state. I couldn’t control this at all. We live on a plane. Do you know the kind of damage I could do if my powers went haywire? Forget a few collapsed buildings, the whole thing would have ended up in the middle of the Atlantic. As much as I would rather be there, it is better for all involved if I stay far away from everyone else.”

“You’re still here,” Ward said.

“You don’t count. If I do any damage to you, I’ll consider it as a little black mark against the red in your ledger.”

“Where did you hear that?”

“The red in your ledger bit? Oh it’s something Trip said his Grandpa used to say. An old Russian thing from the war or something like that.”

Ward smothered the rest of his curiosity on the subject. “Right.”

Skye gave herself another minute of peaceful sunrise appreciation, then pushed herself off the car and Grant’s shoulder. “It’s time to go get some food. And then I will come up with a better plan.”

He only nodded. The two of them got back inside the car. Ward turned the ignition and pulled the car back onto the road, a little cloud of sand behind them the only indication they’d been there. Skye watched his hands on the wheel. Right now, she was in a much better state with him around than not.

As unsettling as it was, as things were going right now, Grant Ward was her partner.  But she had a plan. Well, the first step of a plan. Breakfast.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, thanks to everyone who has been reading and liking and requesting more (!!!!) As a heads up, I might be a little late on the next installment, as my family is visiting this coming week. But fret not, this is not over yet.


	6. Breakfast and some Conversation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Skye and Ward have some pancakes and adapt to their new partnership.

For the first time in the past 24 hours, Skye got to eat an entire meal in peace. She and Ward were sprawled in a booth at a greasy spoon they’d found in the first town off the highway. The town itself consisted of two roads, a gas station, a bar, three churches, and this diner, but it was also the kind of place without wifi and surveillance cameras everywhere, which was an advantage in their current situation.

 

The diner itself looked like the kind of place a biker gang would frequent. Age and the dry desert air had faded the paint both inside and outside to a dull beige. The sign over the door was barely readable. The space inside was really clean though, and their waitress seemed friendly instead of apathetic. She suddenly appeared at the table to clear their syrup coated plates (the pancakes were all you could eat on Wednesdays) and ask if they wanted more coffee. She disappeared back into the kitchen.

 

Grant leaned over the table towards Skye. “If she starts asking too many questions, we better have some good answers.”

 

Skye remained slouched in the corner. “Why would she have questions? It’s not like we’re doing anything out of the ordinary. Just eating breakfast.”

 

Ward gave her his best S.O. look of exasperation and said, “Because this is a small town, unlikely to get many visitors, not too far from where-” he dropped his voice to a whisper, “-the Hulk is hiding out-.”

 

“How would they know that?” Skye asked, at a normal volume.

 

“-and there’s all this,” he said, gesturing at her bruises and band-aids.

 

Skye smiled tightly. “What, you worried the local cops are going to pick you up for abusive behavior?”

 

Ward’s gaze dropped to the table. He didn’t say anything, just traced the carvings in the surface of the table. Skye had a brief moment of guilt, but then the waitress came back with the coffeepot.

 

“One more cup then, folks? Would you like it for the road?”

 

“That would probably be-” Ward began.

 

“Here is fine,” Skye interrupted. She smiled her broadest smile at Ward, her con smile. “My boyfriend and I are enjoying the break from our vacation.”

 

Ward’s face froze momentarily —probably remembering the last time they’d done this, and how well that had gone— but then his field agent instincts kicked back up, and he smiled up at the waitress. “Can’t spend too many hours in a car, you know.”

 

“Of course, of course,” the waitress said, swinging the coffee pot in time. “What are you doing all the way out here?”

 

“Mountain climbing,” Skye improvised. “We’re amature spelunkers.”

 

“I thought spelunking  was in caves…” The waitress was beginning to get suspicious.

 

Ward quickly intervened. “Yes it is, ma’am. We do a little of both… climbing mountains and caves.” He glared at Skye, which she took to mean as Shut up you’re going to draw attention if you keep running your mouth. She decided to take this under advisement, and then promptly opened her mouth again.

 

“Of course we’ve had to take it slow the past few days after my fall,” Skye said, not looking at Ward, but feeling his disapproval very clearly. “For someone who can climb as well as I can, you wouldn’t have thought that I would have trouble with a 10 ft rock, but there you go.”

 

“Oh, that’s too bad. I was wondering why you were bandaged up. Good to know it’s nothing serious.” She said the last part looking directly at Ward, who smiled and tried to look less threatening. Luckily, when he was trying, he could be really charming.

 

The waitress turned to Skye. “You know, my brother-in-law’s the town doctor. Have you had those looked at? You seem awfully beat up.”

 

Skye tried to nod and shake her head simultaneously. “It hurts some, but I really don’t need to see anyone, we already-”

 

The waitress set the coffee pot down and began untying her apron. “No problem at all, really. It’s about time for my break. I can take you over there myself.” She took the coffee pot and her apron back to the kitchen.

 

This left Skye and Ward approximately thirty seconds to have their next argument.

 

“What are you doing?” Ward asked in a furious whisper. “Are you trying to get S.H.I.E.L.D. down on our heads? Because if you are, I am out of here-”

 

“Of course I’m not,” Skye retorted, also in a whisper. “I had to say something, you saw the way she was looking at you, if she’d called the cops how long do you think it would take to get back to somebody?”

 

“Calls like that aren’t exactly unusual enough to get on their radar, Skye,” Ward said, his voice gaining an extra edge. “As long as no one looks us up in a state database, we’ll be fine.”

 

“I couldn’t... nevermind,” Skye said. “Right now this is happening, so we’d better deal with it. At least I get another free trip to the doctor out of it.”

 

The waitress re-emerged from the kitchen and waited for them to stand up from the table. Ward throwing a twenty and a ten down, before moving over to help Skye, who was extra slow and stiff after sitting for so long.

 

“How far is it?” Skye asked.

 

“Just a few blocks down.  This isn’t exactly Los Angeles, you know,” the waitress joked.

 

Ward looked to Skye. “You going to be able to handle that, sweetheart?”

 

“I’ll be fine.”

 

They walked the few blocks to the doctor, slowly because of Skye’s injuries. The doctor’s clinic was in an old brick building that looked just as weather-worn as the diner and the rest of the town. The clinics reception, really just a tiny room with two chairs and a few copies of old children’s magazines, was empty. The waitress told Skye and Ward to wait, and went in search of the doctor. Skye and Ward looked around at the dilapidated chairs and remained standing. Skye reached out a arm and put it on Ward’s shoulder. He turned so she could lean up against him. Theoretically, it was to preserve their cover, but mostly it was because Skye was getting tired again.

 

It only took a minute or two for the waitress to come back, her brother-in-law the doctor in tow. He smiled at the two of them and held out his hand for Ward to shake before directing Skye to one of the examining rooms. Ward followed.

 

This doctor was as professional as Dr. Banner had been. He only asked the briefest of questions about how she acquired her injuries, and unlike his relative, didn’t seem to assume they came from Ward. His evaluation was brief: Skye had severe internal bruising, many fractures, although no broken bones. Like Dr. Banner, he highly recommended that Skye rest.

 

“Thanks, doc,” Skye said, “I definitely will.”

 

She looked at Ward, “We should probably get going.”

 

Ward thought for a moment. “Excuse me?” He asked the doctor, who was filling out a record of their visit. “Is there someplace we could stay around here for a few days? Hotel, B&B, someone with rooms to rent?”

The doctor shook his head. “There isn’t anything like that for another 45 minute drive. Why?”

 

Ward shrugged. “We still have a few days left of our vacation, and even though she needs to rest, it’s nice to be out of the city. Get some time to ourselves, you know.”

 

The doctor smiled. “That is nice. I remember my wife and I- well, anyway, maybe I can help you out. Give me a moment to make a phone call.” He went out into the hallway, closing the door behind him.

 

Skye sat up. “I thought we were trying to keep a low profile here. Asking for favors from strangers does not qualify as low profile.”

 

“We need a new place to hide out, and this is as close to off-the-grid as you can get with access to a gas station. Besides, you need to rest, and we have no where else to go.”

 

Skye sighed. There really didn’t seem to be a better option, a running theme for the last few days. It did seem like a nice town. There probably was no wifi, but that was a good thing, as it removed temptation. And Ward was being civil and mission oriented, so he wouldn’t be a problem, even with the fake dating.

 

“Fine,” Skye said. “We can stay here.”

 

A moment later, the doctor returned holding a cell phone in his hand. “The realtor, Susan, says she has a house on the edge of town that went up for sale a few months ago, still with furniture, that you can use for a few days. The housing market doesn’t really move too fast around here.”

 

“That sounds like it should work,” Ward said.

 

“Thank you,” added Skye.

 

The doctor had them out the door and to the realtor's office in 15 minutes. She and Ward spent 15 minutes working out all the exact details of the arrangement, while Skye sat in one of the office chairs and half-napped. Within an hour, Skye and Ward were sitting in the living room of their new temporary base of operations. It was an old house, two stories, fairly small, but it had a decent bed and excellent water pressure, which was all Skye wanted right now.

 

She half expected semi-domestic Ward to be awkward. What she did not expect was his disappearing right after they had finished their walk-through. Skye heard the car start as he left. Hopefully he wasn’t just going to abandon her here. That would be illogical, especially after he had promised he was going to stay.  Skye tried to relax, laying on the couch, but every creak and groan of old timber made her jump.

 

After Ward had been gone for ten minutes, Skye heard a sharp crack with a bright flash of light. She rolled off the couch and grabbed for the weapon in her bag. Pushing herself off the floor, Skye looked around the room for the source of the noise. There was nothing unusual.

 

She looked into the hallway, eyes following her gun. The hallway was empty, but there was someone in her kitchen. A blonde man in a beige trench coat. His back was to Skye, so she crept into the doorway as silently as possible, then said, “Turn around slowly.”

 

The man turned around, hands in the air. He was fairly nondescript, except for one important detail: where his eyes should have been was only blank walls of flesh.

 

Skye almost screamed, but remembered that she was on her own and held her composure. Well, mostly.

 

“Who the hell are you?” she asked.

  
“Skye, my name is Gordon. I’m from the Afterlife,” he replied. “I’m here to take you home.” 


End file.
